First Advisor

Minton, Santra L.

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Document Type

Thesis

Date Created

8-2019

Department

College of Performing and Visual Arts, Theatre Arts and Dance, Theatre Arts and Dance Student Work

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to describe the responses of participants in a dance class designed for Parkinson’s Disease (PD) patients. This study had a total of eight participants—six were adults with PD and participants in the Parkinson’s dance classes, one was the other primary instructor of the Parkinson’s dance classes, and the other one was a care partner of a participant in the classes. In this study, the researcher used both quantitative and qualitative methods to analyze the data. The researcher sought to observe the experiences of participants in dance classes designed for individuals with PD and interview all the above described participants in the study. The questions explored included: Q1 What experiences are had by adults with PD that participate in a dance class? Q2 How do these experiences correlate with the experiences of other participants? Q3 Do any themes emerge as being more universal experiences? Or is each participant’s experience unique? Q4 Which dance/movement lesson content seems to have the most favorable responses, and which lesson content has the least favorable responses from the PD patients? iv This research project demonstrated that the participation in dance classes is perceived to be extremely beneficial by individuals with PD who take the classes, and that the exercises in the classes can be beneficial in multiple ways, including: physically, socially and emotionally.

Extent

69 pages

Local Identifiers

McAlisterThesis2019.pdf

Rights Statement

Copyright is held by the author.

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